LED street lights to help MC save Rs 7 cr annually

Rajinder Nagarkoti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 22

The project of conversion of the existing street lights into LED street lights in Chandigarh will help the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation save around Rs 7 crore annually.

The project, under which the MC has signed an agreement with Energy Efficient Services Limited (EESL) for the replacement of the existing 48,000 street lights with LED street lights in the city, will cost the MC Rs 55 crore.

The MC will cover the expenditure of Rs 55 crore within seven years and each street light will be replaced with an LED light. After the completion of the project, there will not even be a single non-functional street light, an MC official said.

The project will include financing, supply, installation, infrastructure, commissioning and service and maintenance of the LED street lights, including post-installation maintenance and warranty replacement, during the project period to achieve the agreed energy savings.

Giving details about the project, a senior MC official said the implementation of the project would result in saving energy consumption by up to 50 to 60 per cent and reduction in electricity bills by up to Rs 6 to Rs 7 crore annually. At present, the total electricity bill amounts to Rs 12.64 crore annually.

A complete survey of all areas of Chandigarh will be done by the EESL. The survey team will include officers of the MC as well as the EESL.

MC Chief Engineer NP Sharma said the survey work had already started. A toll-free number would be provided by the EESL at its local office for addressing the complaints. The lights would also be maintained by the EESL for a period of seven years initially, he said.

Control-monitoring system

The monitoring of lights will be done by installing the Centralised Control and Monitoring System, which will be linked to desktops of MC officers. In case of an emergency, the lights can be controlled by officers through the CCMS.

LEDs to have dimming feature

The LEDs will have the dimming feature. The lights will be switched on at a fixed time in the evening, and with the dimming feature, the light will decrease to 50 per cent in the early morning hours.

Company to bear entire capital cost of the project

The EESL will bear the entire capital cost, including the maintenance cost and warranty replacement. No expenditure will be borne by the MC. The EESL will buy back the old lights in the MC area.